The fragile state of St. Vincent’s indigenous musical heritage took center stage during the symposium’s public forum, as prominent steel pan educators and cultural practitioners accused both the education system and the commercial tourism sector of undermining the national artform.
Malaika Knights, an educator representing the Sion Hill Euphonium Steel Orchestra, delivered a scathing critique of institutional bias within the Ministry of Education. Knights revealed that repeated efforts to formally integrate steel pan into the music curriculum at leading institutions, including the St. Vincent Grammar School, have been stonewalled by administrators who continue to prioritize European classical instruments like the piano and recorder.
“There are stumbling blocks everywhere between culture and education,” Knights told the panel. She pointed to a precipitous decline in school-based pan competitions, asserting that the education system fails to recognize the pedagogical and cultural significance of the steel pan.
Knights’ observations were corroborated by multimedia professional and seasoned panist Krystal Oliver, who served as master of ceremonies for Junior Pan Fest 2026. Oliver described the festival’s shrinking participation as “heartbreaking,” revealing that recent competitions saw as few as three or four bands in a category, down from historic highs of eleven competing schools.
Beyond the classroom, Knights exposed routine commercial exploitation of steel pan musicians by local tour operators. Describing performances contracted for luxury boat charters, Knights explained that sea spray regularly corrodes and damages valuable instruments, yet private operators refuse to pay rates reflecting maintenance and replacement costs.
“Every time you try to push back in this industry, they tell you there is an alternative to leave out the steel pan,” Knights said, adding that musicians are repeatedly pressured to perform “for exposure.” She singled out international hotel brand Sandals as virtually the sole corporate entity on the island that justly compensates steel pan performers for their craft and instrument upkeep.
